How alumna Karine Balé fuses finance with sustainability
“My goal was to find a fun, visual way to ensure that everybody knew there were many sustainability initiatives underway at Concordia.”
Karine Balé, BA 23, serves as associate, Sustainability and Impact Solutions at Innocap, a Montreal-based company that provides investment management services.
Backed partly by BNP Paribas and the Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec, Innocap has more than $66 billion USD in assets under management and employs more than 400 people in five countries.
“I chose to pursue economics because I wanted to save the world,” says Balé. “I’m very much engaged as a person, especially from a social standpoint.
“In order for me to be happy in whatever I’m involved with, I need to feel like I’m making an impact.”
After the Department of Economics and Institute for Co-operative Education alumna graduated, she first landed at one of the largest investment management firms worldwide. Still, Balé had a nagging feeling.
“I felt like something was missing. I didn’t want to make money just to make money.”
In her current role at Innocap, Balé combines an interest in finance with a desire to positively influence sustainability goals on a global scale.
She supports two initiatives for the company: the Quebec Emerging Managers Program (QEMP), which awards structured investment mandates to new investment firms; and Investi, an investment fund created to benefit the sustainable finance ecosystem.
“When you’re working on projects that feel important, it’s not as taxing because you know you’re where you need to be,” she says.
‘I went to Concordia because the culture was a fit’
Another important project involves Concordia.
In addition to her job at Innocap, Balé serves as a learning facilitator at Concordia’s Student Success Centre, where she teaches a sustainable finance course as part of the FutureBound program.
Her dedication to give back to her alma mater is connected to the gratitude Balé feels to have been immersed in an environment that fostered co-operation, altruism and innovation.
“I went to Concordia because the culture was a fit,” she says. “It had a very entrepreneurial spirit and that attracted me.
“A lot of students were doing incredible things. There was always something you could do on campus that would connect you to your passions.”
For Balé, one of those passions was sustainability. She was part of Concordia’s Office of Sustainability’s Student Sustainability Ambassadors Program, which provides students with experiences to support a greener and more resilient campus culture.
As a member of the program, Balé developed an interactive, open-source map of Concordia’s sustainability ecosystem — a university first.
A vital tool that helps visualize sustainability leadership across Concordia’s two campuses, the initiative was nominated for a Student Leadership Award by the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education. Concordia also named Balé a Sustainability Champion for her innovation in 2023.
“A lot was being done, but people didn’t know everything that was being accomplished,” says Balé of the experience. “My goal was to find a fun, visual way to ensure that everybody knew there were many sustainability initiatives underway at Concordia.”
A certified yoga instructor, dancer and winner of eight awards and honours as an undergraduate, Balé’s successful trajectory has been impacted by some crucial advice she received from a mentor.
“Sometimes it’s useful to rest and not always be in a state of looking for the next thing,” she echoes. “Just think about where you are, and enjoy the journey.
“You don’t always have to be looking. You just have to know how to cancel out the noise. Then, when the time comes for you to take action, you’ll feel it.”